Penn State sex-abuse charges inspire new state laws

BATON ROUGE — A sexual abuse scandal that rocked Pennsylvania State University has resulted in new laws in Louisiana to penalize those who fail to report allegations of child sex abuse and to protect those who do.

Lawmakers say the measures were inspired by the Penn State scandal that rocked the university's administration and its athletics department.

Three of the bills have been signed by Gov. Bobby Jindal. The Republican governor said he intends to sign the fourth.

One measure protects whistleblowers reporting child sex abuse from employer retaliation, while two others penalize those who fail to report to law enforcement. A fourth adds certain classes of athletics coaches to the list of individuals required to notify authorities if they suspect child sex abuse.